A Virtual Tour of the NMNH: Fossil Plants
Early Land Plant
 Beartooth Butte, Wyoming


Beartooth Butte, Wyoming
Can you see the spore sacs at the top of this 380-million-year-old fossilized plant? The individual spores within them dispersed, germinated, and then gave rise to tiny plants that in turn produced sperm and eggs. These plants could only reproduce in the presence of water, which enabled the sperm to swim to the egg cells and fertilize them. This plant is a member of the Zosterophylls, a now extinct group.


Fossil Plants Main Page Fossil Seeds Fossil Flowers Fossil Flowers The Future Site of Washington, D.C.
Fossil Plants
Main Page		 Fossil
Seeds		 Fossil
Flowers		 Fossil
Flowers		 The Future Site of
Washington, D.C.

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